.  GIFT  or 


I/" 


« 


EDUCATION 

AS 

SERVICE 


BY 

J.  KRISHNAMURTI 

.    ''(ALCYONE) 


THE  RAJPUT  PRESS 

CHICAGO 
1912 


K7 


COPYRIGHT 
THE  RAJPUT  PRESS, 


CHICAGO. 


hf^ 


EDUCATION 

AS 

SERVICE 


287652 


Digitized  by  tine  Internet  Arciiive 

in  2007  witii  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


http://www.arcliive.org/details/educationasserviOOkrisricli 


INTEODUCTION 

In  long  past  lives  the  author  of 
this  little  book  had  much  to  do 
with  educational  work,  and  he 
seems  to  have  brought  over  with 
him  an  intense  interest  in  educa- 
tion. During  his  short  visits  to 
Benares,  he  paid  an  alert  attention 
to  many  of  the  details  of  the  work 
carried  on  in  the  Central  Hindu 
College,  observing  and  asking 
questions,  noting  the  good  feeling 
between  teachers  and  students,  so 
different  from  his  own  school  ex- 
periences in  Southern  India.  He 
appears  to  have  been  brooding  over 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


the  question,  and  has,  in  this  book- 
let, held  up  the  educational  ideals 
which  appear  to  him  to  be  neces- 
sary for  the  improvement  of  the 
present  system. 

The  position  of  the  teacher  mnst 
be  raised  to  that  which  it  used  to 
occupy  in  India,  so  that  to  sit  in 
the  teacher's  chair  will  be  a  badge 
of  social  honour.  His  work  must 
be  seen  as  belonging  to  the  great 
Teaching  Department  in  the  Gov- 
ernment of  our  world,  and  his  rela- 
tion with  his  pupils  must  be  a  copy 
of  the  relation  between  a  Master 
and  His  disciples.  Love,  protective 
and  elevating  on  the  one  side,  must 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


be  met  with  love,  confiding  and 
trustful  on  the  other.  This  is,  in 
truth,  the  old  Hindu  ideal,  exag- 
gerated as  it  may  seem  to  be  to-day, 
and  if  it  be  possible,  in  any  country, 
to  rebuild  this  ideal,  it  should  be 
by  an  Indian  for  Indians.  Hence 
there  is,  at  the  back  of  the  author's 
mind,  a  dream  of  a  future  College 
and  School,  wherein  this  ideal 
may  be  materialised  —  a  Theoso- 
phical  College  and  School,  because 
the  ancient  Indian  ideals  now 
draw  their  life  from  Theosophy, 
which  alone  can  shape  the  new  ves- 
sels for  the  ancient  elixir  of  life. 

7 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


Punishment  must  disappear — 
not  only  the  old  brutality  of  the 
cane,  but  all  the  forms  of  coercion 
that  make  hypocrites  instead  of 
honourable  and  manly  youths.  The 
teacher  must  embody  the  ideal,  and 
the  boy  be  drawn,  by  admiration 
and  love,  to  copy  it.  Those  who 
know  how  swiftly  the  unspoiled 
child  responds  to  a  noble  ideal  will 
realise  how  potent  may  be  the  in- 
fluence of  a  teacher,  who  stimulates 
by  a  high  example  and  rules  by  the 
sceptre  of  love  instead  of  by  the 
rod  of  fear.  Besides,  the  One 
Life  is  in  teacher  and  taught,  as 
Alcyone  reminds  us,*   and  to  that 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


Life,   which   is    Divine,    all   things 
are   possible. 

Education  must  be  shaped  to 
meet  the  individual  needs  of  the 
child,  and  not  by  a  Government 
Procrustes'  bed,  to  fit  which  some 
are  dragged  well-nigh  asunder  and 
others  are  chopped  down.  The 
capacities  of  the  child,  the  line 
they  fit  him  to  pursue,  these  must 
guide  his  education.  In  all,  the 
child's  interest  must  be  paramount; 
the  true  teacher  exists  to  serve. 

The  school  must  be  a  centre  of 
good  and  joyous  influences,  radia- 
ting from  it  to  the  neighbourhood. 
Studies    and    games    must    all    be 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


turned  to  the  building  of  charac- 
ter, to  the  making  of  the  good 
citizen,   the  lover  of  his  country. 

Thus  dreams  the  boy,  who  is  to 
become  a  teacher,  of  the  possibili- 
ties the  future  may  unfold.  May 
he  realise,  in  the  strength  of  a 
noble  Manhood,  the  pure  visions  of 
his  youth,  and  embody  a  Power 
which  shall  make  earth's  deserts 
rejoice  and  blossom  as  the  rose. 
Annie   Besant. 


10 


To      THE 

Supreme    Teacher 

AND     TO 

Those  who  follow  Him 


FOREWORD 

Many  of  the  suggestions  made 
in  this  little  book  come  from  my 
own  memories  of  early  school  life; 
and  my  own  experience  since  of 
the  methods  used  in  Occult  training 
has  shown  me  how  much  happier 
boys'  lives  might  be  made  than 
they  usually  are.  I  have  myself 
experienced  both  the  right  way  of 
teaching  and  the  wrong  way,  and 
therefore  I  want  to  help  others 
towards  the  right  way.  I  write  upon 
the  subject  because  it  is  one  which 
is  very  near  to  the  heart  of  my 
Master,  and  much  of  what  I  say  is 

13 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


but  an  imperfect  echo  of  what  I 
have  heard  from  Him.  Then  again, 
during  the  last  two  years,  I  have 
seen  much  of  the  work  done  in  the 
Central  Hindu  College  at  Benares 
by  Mr.  G.  S.  Arundale  and  his 
devoted  band  of  helpers.  I  have 
seen  teachers  glad  to  spend  their 
time  and  energies  in  continual  ser- 
vice of  those  whom  they  regard  as 
their  younger  brothers.  I  have  also 
watched  the  boys,  in  their  turn, 
showing  a  reverence  and  an  affec- 
tionate gratitude  to  their  teachers 
that  I  had  never  thought  possible. 
Though  many  people  may  think 
the  ideals  put  forward  are  entirely 

14 


EDUCATION    AS    SEEVICE 


beyond  the  average  teacher,  and 
cannot  be  put  into  practice  in 
ordinary  schools,  I  can  thus  point 
at  least  to  one  institution  in  which 
I  have  seen  many  of  the  suggestions 
made  in  this  book  actually  carried 
out.  It  may  be  that  some  of  them 
are^  at  present,  beyond  most 
schools ;  but  they  will  be  recognised 
and  practised  as  soon  as  teachers 
realise  them  as  desirable,  and 
have  a  proper  understanding  of 
the  importance  of  their  office. 

Most    of    the    recommendations 
apply,    I   think,    to   all   countries, 
and  to  all  religions,   and  are  inten- 
ded to  sound  the  note  of  our  com- 
15 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


mon  brotherhood,  irrespective  of 
religion  or  caste,  race  or  colour. 
If  the  unity  of  life  and  the  oneness 
of  its  purpose  could  be  clearly 
taught  to  the  young  in  schools, 
how  much  brighter  would  be  our 
hopes  for  the  future!  The  mutual 
distrust  of  races  and  nations  would 
disappear,  if  the  children  were 
trained  in  mutual  love  and  sym- 
pathy as  members  of  one  great 
family  of  children  all  over  the 
world,  instead  of  being  taught  to 
glory  only  in  their  own  traditions 
and  to  despise  those  of  others. 
True  patriotism  is  a  beautiful  qua- 
lity in  children,  for  it  means  un- 

16 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


selfishness  of  purpose  and  enthu- 
siasm for  great  ideals;  but  that  is 
false  patriotism  which  shows  itself 
in  contempt  for  other  nations. 
There  are,  I  am  told,  many  or- 
ganisations within  the  various  na- 
tions of  the  world,  intended  to  in- 
spire the  children  with  a  love  for 
their  country  and  a  desire  to  serve 
her,  and  that  is  surely  good;  but 
I  wonder  when  there  will  be  an 
international  organisation  to  give 
the  children  of  all  nations  common 
ideals  also,  and  a  knowledge  of 
the  real  foundation  of  right  action, 
the  Brotherhood  of  Man. 

17 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


I  desire  to  thank  my  dear  mother, 
Mrs.  Annie  Besant,  for  the  help 
she  has  given  me  while  I  have 
been  writing  this  little  book,  and 
also  my  dear  friend,  Mr.  G.  S. 
Arundale — with  whom  I  have  often 
talked  on  the  subject — for  many 
useful   suggestions. 

J.  Krishnamurti. 


18 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

The  Teacher 21 

I.  Love 29 

II.  Discrimination       ...  63 

III.  Desirelessness       ...  85 

IV.  Good  Conduct        ...  95 

1.  Self-control  as  to  the  mind    95 

2.  Self-control  in  action       .  117 

3.  Tolerance 135 

4.  Cheerfulness    ....  143 

5.  One-pointedness    .      .      .  149 

6.  Confidence  .      .      •     .      .  156 


19 


EDUCATION  AS  SERVICE. 


THE  TEACHER 

In  At  the  Feet  of  the  Master  I 
have  written  down  the  instructions 
given  to  me  by  my  Master  in  pre- 
paring me  to  learn  how  best  to  be 
useful  to  those  around  me.  All 
who  have  read  the  book  will  know 
how  inspiring  the  Master's  words 
are,  and  how  they  make  each  per- 
son who  reads  them  long  to  train 
himself  for  the  service  of  others. 

I  know  myself  how  much  I  have 
21 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


been  helped  by  the  loving  care  of 
those  to  whom  I  look  for  guidance, 
and  I  am  eager  to  pass  on  to  others 
the  help  I  have  obtained  from  them. 
It  seems  to  me  that  the  Master's 
instructions  can  be  universally  ap- 
plied. They  are  useful  not  only  to 
those  who  are  definitely  trying  to 
tread  the  path  which  leads  to  Ini- 
tiation, but  also  to  all  who,  while 
still  doing  the  ordinary  work  of 
the  world,  are  anxious  to  do  their 
duty  earnestly  and  unselfishly.  On<e 
of  the  noblest  forms  of  work  is 
that  of  the  teacher ;  let  us  see  what 
light  is  thrown  upon  it  by  the 
words  of  the  Master. 

22 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


I  will  take  the  four  Qualifications 
which  have  been  given  in  At  the 
Feet  of  the  Master,  and  will  try  to 
show  how  they  can  be  applied  to 
the  life  of  the  teacher  and  of  the 
students,  and  to  the  relations 
which  should  exist  between  them. 

The  most  important  Qualification 
in  education  is  Love,  and  I  will 
take  that  first. 

It  is  sad  that  in  modern  days 
the  office  of  a  teacher  has  not  been 
regarded  as  on  a  level  with  other 
learned  professions.  Any  one  has 
been  thought  good  enough  to  be  a 
teacher,  and  as  a  result  little  hon- 
our has  been  paid  to  him.    Natu- 

23 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


rally,  therefore,  the  cleverest  boys 
are  not  drawn  towards  that  profes- 
sion. But  really  the  office  of  the 
teacher  is  the  most  sacred  and 
the  most  important  to  the  nation, 
because  it  builds  the  characters  of 
the  boys  and  girls  who  will  be  its 
future  citizens.  In  olden  days  this 
office  was  thought  so  holy  that  on- 
ly priests  were  teachers  and  the 
school  was  a  part  of  the  temple. 
In  India  the  trust  in  the  teacher 
was  so  great  that  the  parents  gave 
over  their  sons  completely  to  him 
for  many  years,  and  teacher  and 
students  lived  together  as  a  family. 
Because  this  happy  relation  should 

24 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


be  brought  back  again,  I  put  Love 
first  among  the  Qualifications  which 
a  teacher  ought  to  have.  If  India 
is  to  become  again  the  great  nation 
which  we  all  hope  to  see,  this  old 
happy  relation  must  be  re-estab- 
lished. 


25 


I.  LOVE. 


I.  LOVE 

My  Master  taught  me  that  Love 
will  enable  a  man  to  acquire  all 
other  qualities  and  that  *^all  the 
rest  without  it  would  never  be 
sufficient.''  Therefore  no  person 
ought  to  be  a  teacher  —  ought  to 
be  allowed  to  be  a  teacher  —  unless 
he  has  shown  in  his  daily  life  that 
Love  is  the  strongest  quality  of 
his  nature.  It  may  be  asked:  How 
are  we  to  find  out  whether  a  person 
possesses  Love  to  a  sufficient  de- 
gree to  make  him  worthy  to  be  a 
teacher?    Just  as  a  boy  shows  his 

natural  capacities  at  an  early  age 
29 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


for  one  profession  or  another,  so 
a  particularly  strong  love-nature 
would  mark  a  boy  out  as  specially 
fitted  to  be  an  instructor.  Such 
boys  should  be  definitely  trained 
for  the  office  of  the  teacher  just  as 
boys  are  trained  for  other  pro- 
fessions. 

Boys  who  are  preparing  for  all 
careers  live  a  common  life  in  the 
same  school,  and  they  can  only  be- 
come useful  to  the  nation  as  men, 
if  their  school  life  is  happy.  A 
young  child  is  naturally  happy, 
and  if  that  happiness  is  allowed 
to  go  on  and  grow  in  the  school, 
and  at  home,  then  he  will  become 

30 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


a  man  who  will  make  others  happy. 
A  teacher  full  of  love  and  sym- 
pathy will  attract  the  boys  and 
make  their  school  life  a  pleasant 
one.  My  Master  once  said  that 
^*  children  are  very  eager  to  learn 
and  if  a  teacher  cannot  interest 
them  and  make  them  love  their 
lessons,  he  is  not  fit  to  be  a  teacher 
and  should  choose  another  profes- 
sion." He  has  said  also:  ^' Those 
who  are  mine  love  to  teach  and  to 
serve.  They  long  for  an  opportu- 
nity of  service  as  a  hungry  man 
longs  for  food,  and  they  are  al- 
ways watching  for  it.  Their  hearts 
are  so  full  of  the  divine  Love  that 

31 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


it  must  be  always  overflowing  in 
love  for  those  around  them.  Only 
such  are  fit  to  be  teachers  —  those 
to  whom  teaching  is  not  only  a 
holy  and  imperative  duty,  but 
also  the  greatest  of  pleasures." 

A  sympathetic  teacher  draws 
out  all  the  good  qualities  in  his 
pupils,  and  his  gentleness  pre- 
vents them  from  being  afraid  of 
him.  Each  boy  then  shows  himself 
just  as  he  is,  and  the  teacher  is 
able  to  see  the  line  best  suited  to 
him  and  to  help  him  to  follow  it. 
To  such  a  teacher  a  boy  will  come 
with  all  his  difficulties,  knowing 
that  he  will  be  met  with  sympathy 

32 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


and  kindness,  and,  instead  of  hid- 
ing his  weaknesses,  he  will  be  glad 
to  tell  everything  to  one  of  whose 
loving  help  he  is  sure.  The  good 
teacher  remembers  his  own  youth, 
and  so  can  feel  with  the  boy  who 
comes  to  him.  My  Master  said: 
**He  who  has  forgotten  his  child- 
hood and  lost  sympathy  with  the 
children  is  not  a  man  who  can 
teach  them  or  help  them." 

This  love  of  the  teacher  for  his 
pupil,  protecting  and  helping  him, 
will  bring  out  love  from  the  pupil 
in  turn,  and  as  he  looks  up  to  his 
teacher  this  love  will  take  the  form 

of    reverence.      Reverence,    begin- 
33 


EDUCATION    AS  /SEKVICE 


ning  in  this  way  with  the  boy,  will 
grow  as  he  grows  older,  and  will 
become  the  habit  of  seeing  and 
reverencing  greatness,  and  so  per- 
haps in  time  may  lead  him  to  the 
Feet  of  the  Master.  The  love  of 
the  boy  to  the  teacher  will  make 
him  docile  and  easy  to  guide,  and 
so  the  question  of  punishment  will 
never  arise.  Thus  one  great  cause 
of  fear  which  at  present  poisons 
all  the  relations  between  the 
teacher  and  his  pupil  will  vanish. 
Those  of  us  who  have  the  happi- 
ness of  being  pupils  of  the  true 
Masters  know  what  this  "  relation 
ought  to  be.   We  know  the  wonder- 

34 


EDUCATION    AS    ^RVICE 


ful  patience,  gentleness  and  sym- 
pathy with  which  They  always 
meet  ns,  even  when  we  may  have 
made  mistakes  or  have  been  weak. 
Yet  there  is  much  more  differ- 
ence between  Them  and  ns  than 
between  the  ordinary  teacher  and 
his  pupil.  When  the  teacher  has 
learned  to  look  upon  his  office  as 
dedicating  him  to  the  service  of 
the  nation,  as  the  Master  has  de- 
dicated Himself  to  the  service  of 
humanity,  then  he  will  become 
part  of  the  great  Teaching  Depart- 
ment of  the  world,  to  which  belongs 
my  own  beloved  Master  —  the  De- 
partment   of    which    the    supreme 

35 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


Teacher  of  Gods  and  men  is  the 
august  Head. 

It  may  be  said  that  many  boys 
could  not  be  managed  in  this  way. 
The  answer  is  that  such  boys  have 
been  already  spoiled  by  bad  treat- 
ment. Even  so,  they  must  be  slow- 
ly improved  by  greater  patience 
and  constant  love.  This  plan  has 
already  proved  successful  when 
tried. 

Living    in    this    atmosphere    of 

love  during  school  hours,    the  boy 

will   become    a    better    son    and   a 

better  brother   at  home,    and  will 

bring  home  with  him  a  feeling  of 

life   and   vigour,    instead   of   com- 
36 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVIC® 


ing  home,  as  he  generally  does 
now,  depressed  and  tired.  When 
he,  in  turn,  becomes  the  head  of 
a  household,  he  will  fill  it  with  the 
love  in  which  he  has  been  brought 
up,  and  so  the  happiness  will  go 
on  spreading  and  increasing,  gen- 
eration after  generation.  Such  a 
boy  when  he  becomes  a  father, 
will  not  look  on  his  son,  as  so 
many  do  now,  from  a  purely  sel- 
fish point  of  view,  as  though  he 
were  merely  a  piece  of  property — 
as  though  the  son  existed  for  the 
sake  of  the  father.  Some  parents 
seem  to  regard  their  children  only 
as  a  means  of  increasing  the  pros- 

37 


EDUCATION    AS    SEBVICE 


perity  and  reputation  of  the  fam- 
ily by  the  professions  which  they 
may  adopt  or  the  marriages  that 
they  may  make,  without  consider- 
ing in  the  least  the  wishes  of  the 
children  themselves.  The  wise 
father  will  consult  his  boy  as  a 
friend,  will  take  pains  to  find  out 
what  his  wishes  are,  and  will  help 
him  with  his  greater  experience  to 
carry  out  those  wishes  wisely,  re- 
membering always  that  his  son  is 
an  ego  who  has  come  to  the 
father  to  give  him  the  oppor- 
tunity of  making  good  karma  by 
aiding  the  son  in  his  progress.  He 

will  never  forget  that  though  his 
38 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


son's  body  x^aj  be  young,  the  soul 
within  is  as  old  as  his  own,  and 
must  therefore  be  treated  with 
respect  as  well  as  affection. 

Love  both  at  home  and  in  the 
school  will  naturally  show  itself 
in  continual  small  acts  of  service, 
and  these  will  form  a  habit  out  of 
which  will  grow  the  larger  and 
more  heroic  acts  of  service  which 
makes  the  greatness   of  a  nation. 

The  Master  speaks  much  on 
cruelty  as  a  sin  against  love,  and 
distinguishes  between  intentional 
and  unintentional  cruelty.  He  says : 
^^Intentional  cruelty  is  purposely 
to    give    pain    to    another    living 

39 


EI)tJ  CATION    AS    SERVICE 


being;  and  that  is  the  greatest  of 
all  sins — the  work  of  a  devil  rather 
than  a  man."  The  use  of  the  cane 
must  bfe  classed  under  this,  for  He 
says  of  intentional  cruelty:  '^Many 
schoolmasters  do  it  habitually." 
We  must  also  include  all  words 
and  acts  intended  to  wound  the 
feelings  of  the  boy  and  to  hurt 
his  self-respect.  In  some  coun- 
tries corporal  punishment  is  for- 
bidden, but  in  most  it  is  still  the 
custom.  But  my  Master  said: 
^^  These  people  try  to  excuse  their 
brutality  by  saying  that  it  is  the 
custom;  but  a  crime  does  not  cease 
to  be  a  crime  because  many  com- 

40 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


mit  it.  Karma  takes  no  account 
of  custom;  and  the  karma  of  cru- 
elty is  the  most  terrible  of  all. 
In  India  at  least  there  can  be  no 
excuse  for  such  customs,  for  the 
duty  of  harmlessnes  is  well  known 
to  all." 

The  whole  idea  of  what  is  called 
^'punishment''  is  not  only  wrong 
but  foolish.  A  teacher  who  tries 
to  frighten  his  boys  into  doing 
what  he  wishes  does  not  see  that 
they  only  obey  him  while  he  is 
there,  and  that  as  soon  as  they 
are  out  of  his  sight  they  will  pay 
no  attention  to  his  rules,  or  even 
take  a  pleasure  in  breaking  them 


41 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


because  they  dislike  him.  But  if 
he  draws  them  to  do  what  he  wants 
because  they  love  him  and  wish  to 
please  him,  they  will  keep  his 
rules  even  in  his  absence,  and  so 
make  his  work  much  easier.  In- 
stead of  developing  fear  and  dis- 
like in  the  characters  of  the  boys, 
the  wise  teacher  will  gain  his  ends 
by  calling  forth  from  them  love 
and  devotion ;  and  so  will  strength- 
en all  that  is  good  in  them,  and 
help  them  on  the  road  of  evolution. 
Again,  the  idea  of  expulsion,  of 
getting  rid  of  a  troublesome  boy 
instead  of  trying  to  improve  him, 
is    wrong.     Even    when,    for    the 

42 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


sake  of  his  companions,  a  boy  has 
to  be  separated  from  them,  the 
good  of  the  boy  himself  must  not 
be  forgotten.  In  fact,  all  through, 
school  discipline  should  be  based 
on  the  good  of  the  boys  and  not 
on  the  idea  of  saving  trouble  to 
the  teacher.  The  loving  teacher 
does  not  mind  the   trouble. 

Unintentional  cruelty  often 
comes  from  mere  thoughtlessness, 
and  the  teacher  should  be  very 
careful  not  to  be  cruel  in  words 
or  actions  from  want  of  thought. 
Teachers  often  caus^  pain  by  has- 
ty words  uttered  at  a  time  when 

they  have  been  disturbed  by  some 
43 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


outside  annoyance,  or  are  trying 
to  attend  to  some  important  duty. 
The  teacher  may  forget  the  inci- 
dent or  pass  it  over  as  trivial, 
but  in  many  such  cases  a  sensitive 
boy  has  been  wounded,  and  he 
broods  over  the  words  and  ends 
by  imagining  all  sorts  of  foolish 
exaggerations.  In  this  way  many 
misunderstandings  arise  between 
teachers  and  boys,  and  though  the 
boys  must  learn  to  be  patient  and 
generous,  and  to  realise  that  the 
teacher  is  anxious  to  help  all  as 
much  as  he  can,  the  teacher  in  his 
turn  must  always  be  on  the  alert 
to  watch  his  words,  and  to  allow 

44 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


nothing  but  gentleness  to  shine  out 
from  his  speech  and  actions,  how- 
ever busy  he  may  be. 

If  the  teacher  is  always  gentle 
to  the  boys,  who  are  younger  and 
weaker  than  himself,  it  will  be 
easy  for  him  to  teach  them  the  im- 
portant lesson  of  kindness  to  little 
children,  animals,  birds  and  other 
living  creatures.  The  older  boys, 
who  themselves  are  gentle  and 
tactful,  should  be  encouraged  to 
observe  the  condition  of  the  ani- 
mals they  see  in  the  streets,  and 
if  they  see  any  act  of  cruelty,  to 
beg  the  doer  of  it  very  politely  and 

gently,    to  treat  the  animal  more 
45 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


kindly.  The  boys  should  be  taught 
that  nothing  which  involves  the 
hunting  and  killing  of  animals 
should  be  called  sport.  That  word 
ought  to  be  kept  for  manly  games 
and  exercises,  and  not  used  for 
the  wounding  and  killing  of  ani- 
mals. My  Master  says:  ^^The  fate 
of  the  cruel  must  fall  also  upon 
all  who  go  out  intentionally  to  kill 
God's  creatures  and  call  it  sport." 
I  do  not  think  that  teachers 
realise  the  harm  and  the  suffering 
caused  by  gossip,  which  the  Master 
calls  a  sin  against  love.  Teachers 
should  be  very  careful  not  to  make 
difficulties  for  their  boys  by  gos- 

46 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


siping  about  them.    No  boy  should 

ever    be    allowed    to    have    a    bad 

name  in  the  school,  and  it  should 

be  the  rule  that  no  one  may  speak 

ill    of    any    other    member    of    the 

school  whether  teacher  or  boy. 

My   Master   points   out   that   by 

talking  about  a  person's  faults,  we 

not    only   strengthen    those   faults 

in  him,  but  also  fill  our  own  minds 

with  evil  thoughts.    There  is  only 

one   way   of  really  getting  rid   of 

our  lower  nature,    and  that  is  by 

strengthening     the     higher.      And 

while  it  is  the  duty  of  the  teacher 

to   understand   the   weaknesses    of 

those  placed  in  his  charge  he  must 
47 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


realise  that  he  will  destroy  the 
lower  nature  only  by  surrounding 
the  boy  with  his  love,  thus  stimu- 
lating the  higher  and  nobler  quali- 
ties till  there  is  no  place  left  for 
the  weaknesses.  The  more  the 
teacher  gossips  about  the  faults 
of  the  boys,  the  more  harm  he 
does,  and,  except  during  a  consul- 
tation with  his  fellow  teachers  as 
to  the  best  methods  of  helping  in- 
dividual boys  out  of  their  weak- 
nesses, he  should  never  talk  about 
a  boy's  defects. 

The  boys  must  also  be  taught 
the  cruelty  of  gossip  among  them- 
selves.   I  know  many  a  boy  whose 

48 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


life  at  school  has  been  made  mis- 
erable because  his  companions  have 
been  thoughtless  and  unkind,  and 
the  teacher  either  has  not  noticed 
his  unhappiness,  or  has  not  under- 
stood how  to  explain  to  the  boys 
the  nature  of  the  harm  they  were 
doing.  Boys  frequently  take  hold 
of  some  peculiarity  in  speech  or 
in  dress,  or  of  some  mistake  which 
has  been  made,  and,  not  realising 
the  pain  they  cause,  carelessly  tor- 
ture their  unfortunate  school- 
fellow with  unkind  allusions.  In 
this  case  the  mischief  is  due  chief- 
ly to  ignorance,  and  if  the  teacher 
has  influence   over  the  boys,    and 

49 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


gently  explains  to  tliem  what  pain 
they  are  giving  they  will  quickly 
stop. 

They  must  be  taught,  too,  that 
nothing  which  causes  suffering  or 
annoyance  to  another  can  ever  be 
the  right  thing  to  do,  nor  can  it 
ever  be  amusing  to  any  right- 
minded  boy.  Some  children  seem 
to  find  pleasure  in  teasing  or  an- 
noying others,  but  that  is  only  be- 
cause they  are  ignorant.  When 
they  understand,  they  will  never 
again  be  so  unbrotherly. 

In  every  class-room  these  words 
of  my  Master  should  be  put  up  in 
a  prominent  place:  ^^ Never  speak 

50 


EDUCATION    AS    SEEVICE 


ill  of  any  one;  refuse  to  listen 
when  anyone  else  speaks  ill  of  an- 
other, but  gently  say:  ^Perhaps 
this  is  not  true,  and  even  if  it  is, 
it  is  kinder  not  to  speak  of  it.'  " 
There  are  crimes  against  love 
which  are  not  recognised  as  crimes, 
and  which  are  unfortunately  very 
common.  A  teacher  must  use  dis- 
cretion in  dealing  with  these,  but 
should  teach  a  doctrine  of  love  so 
far  as  he  is  permitted,  and  may 
at  least  set  a  good  example  him- 
self. Three  of  these  are  put  by 
my  Master  under  the  head  of  cru- 
elties caused  by  superstition. 
51 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


1.  Animal  sacrifice.  Among  civi- 
lised nations  this  is  now  found  only 
in  India,  and  is  tending  to  disap- 
pear even  there.  Parents  and 
teachers  should  tell  their  boys 
that  no  custom  which  is  cruel  is 
really  part  of  any  true  religion. 
For  we  have  seen  that  religion 
teaches  unity,  and  therefore  kind- 
ness and  gentleness  to  everything 
that  feels.  God  cannot  therefore 
be  served  by  cruelty  and  the  kill- 
ing of  helpless  creatures.  If  Indian 
boys  learn  this  lesson  of  love  in 
school  they  will,  when  they  become 
men,  put  an  end  entirely  to  this 
cruel  superstition. 

52 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


2.  Much  more  widely  spread  is 
what  my  Master  calls  ''the  still 
more  cruel  superstition  that  man 
needs  flesh  for  food."  This  is  a 
matter  that  concerns  the  parent 
more  than  the  teacher,  but  at 
least  the  teacher  may  gradually 
lead  his  hoys  to  see  the  cruelty 
involved  in  killing  animals  for 
food.  Then,  even  if  the  boy  is 
obliged  to  eat  meat  at  home,  he 
will  give  it  up  when  he  is  a  man, 
and  will  give  his  own  children  a 
better  opportunity  than  he  him- 
self had.  If  parents  at  home  and 
teachers  at  school  would  train 
young  children  in  the  duty  of  lov- 

53 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


ing  and  protecting  all  living  crea- 
tures, the  world  would  be  much 
happier  than  it  is  at  present. 

3.'^  The  treatment  which  super- 
stition has  meted  out  to  the  de- 
pressed classes  in  our  beloved  In- 
dia," says  the  Master,  is  a  proof 
that  ^Hhis  evil  quality  can  breed 
heartless  cruelty  even  among  those 
who  know  the  duty  of  Brother- 
hood." To  get  rid  of  this  form 
of  cruelty  every  boy  must  be  taught 
the  great  lesson  of  love,  and  much 
can  be  done  for  this  in  school  as 
well  as  at  home.  The  boy  at  school 
has  many  special  opportunities 
of   learning    this    lesson,    and   the 

54 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


teacher  should  point  out  the  duty 
of  showing  courtesy  and  kindness 
to  all  who  are  in  inferior  positions, 
as  well  as  to  the  poor  whom  he 
may  meet  outside.  All  who  know 
the  truth  of  reincarnation  should 
realise  that  they  are  members  of 
one  great  family,  in  which  some 
are  younger  brethren  and  some 
elder.  Boys  must  be  taught  to 
show  gentleness  and  consideration 
to  servants,  and  to  all  who  are 
below  them  in  social  position ;  caste 
was  not  intended  to  promote  pride 
and  rudeness,  and  Manu  teaches 
that  servants  should  be  treated  as 
the   children   of  the  family. 

55 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


A  great  part  of  the  teacher's 
work  lies  in  the  playground,  and 
the  teacher  who  does  not  play  with 
his  boys  will  never  qnite  win  their 
hearts.  Indian  boys  as  a  rule  do 
not  play  enough,  and  time  should 
be  given  for  games  during  the 
school  day.  Even  the  teachers  who 
have  not  learned  to  play  in  their 
youth  should  come  to  the  play- 
ground and  show  interest  in  the 
games,  thus  sharing  in  this  part 
of  the  boy's  education. 

In     schools     where     there     are 

boarding-houses    the    love    of    the 

teacher  is  especially  necessary,  for 

in  them  the  boarding-house  must 
56 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 

take  the  place  of  the  home,  and  a 
family  feeling  must  be  created 
there.  Bright  and  affectionate 
teachers  will  be  looked  on  as  elder 
brothers,  and  difficulties  which 
escape  rules  will  be  got  rid  of 
by  love. 

In  fact,  all  the  many  activities 
of  school  life  should  be  made  into 
channels  through  which  affection 
can  run  between  teacher  and  pu- 
pil, and  the  more  channels  there 
are  the  better  it  will  be  for  both. 
As  the  boy  grows  older  these  chan- 
nels will  naturally  become  more 
numerous,  and  the  love  of  the 
school  will  become  the  friendship 

57 


EDUCATIOlSr    AS    SERVICE 


of  manhood.    Thus  love  will  have 
her  perfect  work. 

Love  on  the  physical  plane  has 
many  forms.  We  have  the  love  of 
husband  and  wife,  parents  and 
children,  brothers  and  sisters,  the 
affection  between  relatives  and 
friends.  But  all  these  are  blended 
and  enriched  in  the  love  of  the 
Master  to  His  disciple.  The  Master 
gives  to  His  pupil  the  gentleness 
and  protection  of  a  mother,  the 
strength  of  a  father,  the  under- 
standing of  a  brother  or  a  sister, 
the  encouragement  of  a  relative 
or  a  friend,    and  He  is  one  with 

His  pupil  and  His  pupil  is  a  part 
58 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 

of  Him.  Besides  this,  the  Master 
knows  His  pupil's  past,  and  His 
pupil's  future,  and  guides  him 
through  the  present  from  the 
past  into  the  future.  The  pupil 
knows  but  little  beyond  the  pres- 
ent, and  he  does  not  understand 
that  great  love  which  draws  its 
inspiration  from  the  memory  of 
the  past  and  shapes  itself  to  mould 
the  powers  of  the  future.  He  may 
even  sometimes  doubt  the  wisdom 
of  the  love  which  guides  itself 
according  to  a  pattern  which  his 
eyes  cannot  see. 

That      which      I      have       said 

above  may  seem  a  very  high  ideal 
59 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


for  the  relation  between  a  teacher 
and  pupil  down  here.  Yet  the 
difference  between  them  is  less 
than  the  difference  between  a 
Master  and  His  disciple.  The 
lower  relation  should  be  a  faint 
reflection  of  the  higher,  and  at 
least  the  teacher  may  set  the 
higher  before  himself  as  an  ideal. 
Such  an  ideal  will  lift  all  his  work 
into  a  higher  world,  and  all  school 
life  will  be  made  happier  and 
better  because  the  teacher  has  set 
it  before  him. 


60 


II.  DISCRIMINATION. 


11.  DISCEIMINATION 

The  next  very  necessary  qua- 
lification for  the  teacher  is  Dis- 
crimination. My  Master  said  that 
the  most  important  knowledge 
was  ^^the  knowledge  of  God's  plan 
for  men,  for  God  has  a  plan,  and 
that  plan  is  evolution."  Each 
boy  has  his  own  place  in  evolution, 
and  the  teacher  must  try  to  see 
what  that  place  is,  and  how  he 
can  best  help  the  boy  in  that  place. 
This  is  what  the  Hindus  call 
Dharma,  and  it  is  the  teacher's 
duty  to  find  out  the  boy's  dharma 

and   to   help   him   to   fulfil   it.    In 
63 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


other  words,  the  teaching  given  to 
the  boy  should  be  that  which  is 
suitable  for  him,  and  the  teacher 
must  use  discrimination  in  choos- 
ing the  teaching,  and  in  his  way 
of  giving  it.  Under  these  condi- 
tions, the  boy's  progress  would 
be  following  out  the  tendencies 
made  in  past  lives,  and  would 
really  be  remembering  the  things 
he  knew  before.  ^^The  method  of 
evolution,"  as  a  great  Master 
said,  '4s  a  constant  dipping  down 
into  matter  under  the  law  of  re- 
adjustment," i.e.  by  reincarnation 
and  karma.  Unless  the-  teacher 
knows  these  truths,  he  cannot  work 

64 


EDUCATIOIT    AS    SEKVICE 


with    evolution    as    he    should    do, 

and  much  of  his  time  and  of  his 

pupil's  time  will  be  wasted.     It  is 

this   ignorance   which  causes   such 

small  results  to  be  seen,  after  many 

years  at  school,  and  which  leaves 

the  boy  himself  so  ignorant  of  the 

great    truths    which    he    needs    to 

guide  his  conduct  in  life. 

Discrimination  is  wanted  in  the 

choice  of  subjects  and  in  the  way 

in  which  they   are   taught.     First 

in    importance    come    religion    and 

morals,   and   these  must  not   only 

be    taught    as    subjects    but    must 

be  made  both  the  foundation  and 

the  atmosphere  of  school  life,  for 
65 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


these  are  equally  wanted  by  every 
boy,  no  matter  v^hat  he  is  to  do 
later  in  life.  Eeligion  teaches  us 
that  we  are  all  part  of  One  Self, 
and  that  we  ought  therefore  help 
one  another.  My  Master  said  that 
people  '^try  to  invent  ways  for 
themselves  which  they  think  will 
be  pleasant  for  themselves,  not 
understanding  that  all  are  one, 
and  that  therefore  only  what  the 
One  wills  can  ever  be  really  pleas- 
ant for  anyone."  And  He  also 
said:  '^Tou  can  help  your  brother 
through  that  which  you  have  in 
common  with  him,  and  that  is  the 
Divine  life."     To  teach  this  is  to 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


teach  religion,  and  to  live  it  is  to 
lead  the  religious  life. 

At  present  the  value  of  the  set 
moral  teaching  is  largely  made 
useless  by  the  arrangements  of 
the  school.  The  school  day  should 
always  open  with  something  of  the 
nature  of  a  religious  service,  strik- 
ing the  note  of  a  common  purpose 
and  a  common  life,  so  that  the 
boys,  who  are  all  coming  from 
different  homes  and  different  ways 
of  living  may  be  tuned  to  unity 
in  the  school.  It  is  a  good  plan 
to  begin  with  a  little  music  or  sing- 
ing so  that  the  boys,  who  often 
come  rushing  in  from  hastily  taken 

67 


EDUCATION    AS    SEBVICE 


food,  may  quiet  down  and  begin 
the  school  day  in  an  orderly  way. 
After  this  should  come  a  prayer 
and  a  very  short  but  beautiful 
address,  placing  an  ideal  before 
the  boys. 

But  if  these  ideals  are  to  be 
useful,  they  must  be  practised  all 
through  the  school  day,  so  that 
the  spirit  of  the  religious  period 
may  run  through  the  lessons  and 
the  games.  For  example,  the  duty 
of  the  strong  to  help  the  weak  is 
taught  in  the  religious  hour,  and 
yet  for  the  rest  of  the  day  the 
strong  are  set  to  outstrip  the  weak, 
and  are  given  valuable  prizes  for 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


their  success  in  doing  so.  These 
prizes  make  many  boys  jealous 
and  discourage  others,  they  stimu- 
late the  spirit  of  struggle.  The 
Central  Hindu  College  Brotherhood 
has  for  its  motto:  ^'The  ideal  re- 
ward is  an  increased  power  to  love 
and  to  serve."  If  the  prizes  for 
good  work  and  conduct  and  for 
helping  others  were  positions  of 
greater  trust  and  power  of  help- 
ing, this  motto  would  be  carried 
out.  In  fact,  in  school  honour 
should  be  given  to  character  and 
helpfulness  rather  than  to  strength 
of  mind  and  body;  strength  ought 
to  be  trained  and  developed,    but 

69 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


not  rewarded  for  merely  outstrip- 
ping the  weak.  Such  a  school  life 
will  send  out  into  the  world  men 
who  will  think  more  of  filling  pla- 
ces of  usefulness  to  the  nation 
than  of  merely  gaining  money  and 
power  for  themselves. 

An  important  part  of  moral 
teaching  lies  in  the  training  of  the 
boy  in  patriotism — love  of  country. 
The  above  plan  of  teaching  the 
boy  to  be  of  service  in  the  little 
family  of  the  school,  will  naturally 
widen  out  into  service  in  the  large 
family  of  the  nation.  This  will 
also  influence  the  boy  in  his  choice 
of  a  profession,  for  he  will  think 

70 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


of  the  nation  as  his  family,  and 
will  try  to  fill  a  useful  place  in  the 
national  life.  But  great  care  must 
be  taken  in  teaching  patriotism  not 
to  let  the  boys  slip  into  hatred  of 
other  nations,  as  so  often  happens. 
This  is  especially  important  in 
India,  where  both  Indian  and 
English  teachers  should  try  to 
make  good  feeling  between  the 
two  races  living  side  by  side,  so 
that  they  may  join  in  common 
work  for  the  one  Empire. 

Discrimination  may  also  be 
shown  in  the  arrangement  of  les- 
sons,   the    most    difficult    subjects 

being  taken  early  in  the   day,  as 
71 


EDUCATIOISr    AS    SERVICE 


far  as  possible.  For  even  with  the 
best  and  most  carefully  arranged 
teaching  a  boy  will  be  more  tired 
at  the  end  of  the  school  day  than 
at  the  beginning. 

Discrimination  is  also  wanted 
in  the  method  of  teaching,  and  in 
the  amount  of  time  given  to  men-, 
tal  and  physical  education.  The 
care  of  the  body  and  its  develop- 
ment are  of  the  first  importance, 
for  without  a  healthy  body  all 
teaching  is  wasted.  It  should  be 
remembered  that  the  boy  can  go 
on,  learning  all  his  life,  if  he  is 
wise  enough  to  wish  to  do  so;  but 
it    is    only    during    the    years    of 

72 


EDUCATIOlSr    AS    SERVICE 


growth  that  he  can  build  up  a 
healthy  physical  body  in  which  to 
spend  that  life.  Therefore  during 
those  early  years  the  healthy 
development  of  that  physical  body 
must  be  absolutely  the  first  con- 
sideration, and  anything  that  can- 
not be  learned  compatibly  with 
that  must  for  the  time  remain  un- 
learned. The  strain  on  the  boy's 
mind  —  and  particularly  on  those 
of  very  young  boys  —  is  far  too 
great  and  lasts  far  too  long;  the 
lesson  period  should  be  broken  up, 
and  the  teacher  should  be  very 
careful  to  watch  the  boys  and  to 
see  that  they  do  not  become  tired. 

73 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


His  wish  to  prevent  this  strain 
will  make  him  think  out  new  ways 
of  teaching,  which  will  make  the 
lessons  very  interesting;  for  a  boy 
who  is  interested  does  not  easily 
become  tired.  I  myself  remember 
how  tired  we  used  to  be  when  we 
reached  home,  far  too  tired  to  do 
anything  but  lie  about.  But  the 
Indian  boy  is  not  allowed  to  rest 
even  when  he  comes  home,  for  he 
has  then  to  begin  home  lessons, 
often  with  a  tutor,  when  he  ought 
to  be  at  rest  or  play.  These  home 
lessons  begin  again  in  the  morn- 
ing, before  he  goes  to  school,  and 

the  result  is  that  he  looks  on  his 
74 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


lessons  as  a  hardship  instead  of 
a  pleasure.  Much  of  this  home- 
work is  done  by  a  very  bad  light 
and  the  boy's  eyes  suffer  much. 
All  home  lessons  should  be  abol- 
ished; home  work  burns  the  candle 
at  both  ends,  and  makes  the  boy's 
life  a  slavery.  School  hours  are 
quite  long  enough,  and  an  intelli- 
gent teacher  can  impart  in  them 
quite  as  much  as  any  boy  ought  to 
learn  in  one  day.  What  cannot  be 
taught  within  those  hours  should 
be  postponed  until  the  next  day. 
We  see  the  result  of  all  this 
overstrain  in  the  prevalence  of 
eye-diseases    in    India.      Western 

75 


EDUCATIOISr    AS    SERVICE 


countries  set  us  a  good  example 
in  the  physical  training  of  their 
boys,  who  leave  school  strong  and 
healthy.  I  have  heard  in  England 
that  in  the  poorer  schools  the 
children  are  often  inspected  by  a 
doctor  so  that  any  eye-disease  or 
other  defect  is  found  out  at  once 
before  it  becomes  serious.  I  won- 
der how  many  boys  in  India  are 
called  stupid  merely  because  they 
are  suffering  from  some  eye  or 
ear  trouble. 

Discrimination  should  also  be 
shown  in  deciding  the  length  of 
the    waking    and    sleeping    times. 

These    vary,    of   course,    with   age 
76 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


and  to  some  extent  perhaps  with 
temperament.  No  boy  should  have 
less  than  nine  or  ten  hours  of 
sleep;  when  growth  ceases,  eight 
hours  would  generally  be  enough. 
A  boy  grows  most  during  his 
sleep,  so  that  the  time  is  not  in 
the  least  wasted. 

Few  people  realise  how  much  a 
boy  is  affected  by  his  surroundings, 
by  the  things  on  which  his  eyes 
are  continually  resting.  The  emo- 
tions and  the  mind  are  largely 
trained  through  the  eye,  and  bare 
walls,  or,  still  worse,  ugly  pictures 
are  distinctly  harmful.     It  is  true 

that  beautiful  surroundings    some- 

77 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


times  cost  a  little  more  than  ugly 
ones,  but  the  money  is  well  spent. 
In  some  things  only  trouble  is 
needed  in  choosing,  for  an  ugly 
picture  costs  as  much  as  a  pretty 
one.  Perfect  cleanliness  is  also 
absolutely  necessary,  and  teachers 
should  be  constantly  on  the  watch 
to  see  that  it  is  maintained.  The 
Master  said  about  the  body:  ^^Keep 
it  strictly  clean  always;  even  from 
the  minutest  speck  of  dirt."  Both 
teachers  and  students  should  be 
very  clean  and  neat  in  their  dress, 
thus  helping  to  preserve  the  gen- 
eral beauty  of  the  school  surround- 

78 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


ings.  In  all  these  things  careful 
discrimination  is  wanted. 

If  a  boy  is  weak  in  a  particular 
subject,  or  is  not  attracted  by 
some  subject  which  he  is  obliged 
to  learn,  a  discriminating  teacher 
will  sometimes  help  him  by  sug- 
gesting to  him  to  teach  it  to  one 
who  knows  less  than  he  does.  The 
wish  to  help  the  younger  boy  will 
make  the  elder  eager  to  learn 
more,  and  that  which  was  a  toil 
becomes  a  pleasure.  A  clever 
teacher  will  think  of  many  such 
ways  of  helping  his  boys. 

If  discrimination  has  been 
shown,  as   suggested  in  a  preced- 

79 


EDUCATION    AS    SEBVICE 


ing  paragraph,  in  choosing  the 
best  and  most  helpful  boys  for 
positions  of  trust,  it  will  be  easy 
to  teach  the  younger  boys  to  look 
up  to  and  wish  to  please  them. 
The  wish  to  please  a  loved  and 
admired  elder  is  one  of  the  strong- 
est motives  in  a  boy,  and  this 
should  be  used  to  encourage  good 
conduct,  instead  of  using  punish- 
ment to  drive  boys  away  from 
what  is  bad.  If  the  teacher  can 
succeed  in  attracting  this  love  and 
admiration  to  himself,  he  will  re- 
main a  helper  to  his  students  long 
after  they  have  become  men.  I 
have  been  told  that  the  boys  who 

80 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


were  under  Dr.  Arnold  at  Eugby 
continued  in  after  life  to  turn  to 
him  for  advice  in  their  troubles 
and  perplexities. 

We  may  perhaps  add  that  dis- 
crimination is  a  most  important 
qualification  for  those  whose  duty 
it  is  to  choose  the  teachers.  High 
character  and  the  love-nature  of 
which  we  have  already  spoken  are 
absolutely  necessary  if  the  above 
suggestions  are  to  be  carried  out. 


81 


III.  DESIRELESSNESS. 


III.  DESIEELESSNESS 

The  next  qualification  to  be  con- 
sidered is  Desirelessness. 

There  are  many  difficulties  in 
the  way  of  the  teacher  when  he 
tries  to  acquire  desirelessness,  and 
it  also  requires  special  considera- 
tion from  the  standpoint  of  the 
student. 

As  has  been  said  in  At  the  Feet 

of  the  Master:    ^'In  the  light  of 

His  holy  Presence  all  desire  dies, 

but  the  desire  to  be  like  Him."   It 

is  also  said  in  the  Bhagavad  Gita 

that   all   desire   dies    ^^when   once 

the    Supreme    is    seen."     This    is 
85 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


^the  ideal  at  which  to  aim,  that 
the  One  Will  shall  take  the  place 
of  changing  desires.  This  Will  is 
seen  in  our  dharma,  and  in  a 
trne  teacher,  one  whose  dharma  is 
teaching,  his  one  desire  will  be  to 
teach,  and  to  teach  well.  In  fact, 
unless  this  desire  is  felt,  teaching 
is  not  his  dharma,  for  the  pres- 
ence of  this  desire  is  inseparable 
from  real  capacity  to  teach. 

We  have  already  said  that  little 
honour,  unfortunately,  is  attached 
to  the  post  of  a  teacher,  and  that 
a  man  often  takes  the  position 
because   he   can   get   nothing   else, 

instead  of  because  he  really  wants 
86 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


to  teach,  and  knows  that  he  can 
teach.  The  result  is  that  he  thinks 
more  about  salary  than  anything 
else,  and  is  always  looking  about 
for  the  chance  of  a  higher  salary. 
This  becomes  his  chief  desire. 
While  the  teacher  is  no  doubt 
partly  to  blame  for  this,  it  is  the 
system  which  is  mostly  in  fault, 
for  the  teacher  needs  enough  to 
support  himself  and  his  family, 
and  this  is  a  right  and  natural 
wish  on  his  part.  It  is  the  duty 
of  the  nation  to  see  that  he  is 
not  placed  in  a  position  in  which 
he  is  obliged  to  be  always  desiring 
increase   of   salary,   or   must   take 

87 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


private  tuition  in  order  to  earn 
enough  to  live.  Only  when  this 
has  been  done  will  the  teacher  feel 
contented  and  happy  in  the  posi- 
tion he  occupies,  and  feel  the  dig- 
nity of  his  office  as  a  teacher, 
whatever  may  be  his  position 
among  other  teachers  —  which  is, 
I  fear,  now  marked  chiefly  by  the 
amount  of  his  salary.  Only  the 
man  who  is  really  contented  and 
happy  can  have  his  mind  free  to 
teach  well. 

The  teacher  should  not  desire 
to  gain  credit  for  himself  by 
forcing  a  boy  along  his  own  line, 

but    should    consider    the    special 
88 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


talent  of  each  boy,  and  the  way 
in  which  he  can  gain  most  success. 
Too  often  the  teacher,  thinking 
only  of  his  own  subject,  forgets 
that  the  boy  has  to  learn  many 
subjects.  The  one  on  which  most 
stress  should  be  laid  is  the  one 
most  suited  to  the  boy's  capacity. 
Unless  the  teachers  co-operate 
with  each  other,  the  boy  is  too 
much  pressed,  for  each  teacher 
urges  him  on  in  his  own  subject, 
and  gives  him  home-lessons  in 
this.  There  are  many  teachers, 
but  there  is  only  one  boy. 

Again,   the   boy's   welfare   must 
be  put  by  the  teacher  before  his 

89 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


own  desire  to  obtain  good  results 
in  an  examination.  Sometimes  it 
is  better  for  a  boy  to  remain  for 
another  year  in  a  class  and 
master  a  subject  thoroughly  rather 
than  to  go  up  for  an  examination 
which  is  really  too  difficult  for 
him.  In  such  a  case  it  is  right  to 
keep  him  back.  But  it  is  not  right 
to  keep  him  back  merely  for  the 
sake  of  good  results  for  the  teach- 
er. On  the  other  hand,  a  teacher 
has  sometimes  to  resist  the 
parents  who  try  to  force  the  boy 
beyond    his    strength,     and    think 

more   of  his  rising  into   a  higher 
90 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


class   than   of  his   really  knowing 
his  subjects. 

Unless  the  teacher  has  desireless- 
ness,  his  own  desires  may  blind 
him  to  the  aspirations  and  capa- 
cities of  the  boys  in  his  care,  and 
he  will  be  frequently  imposing 
his  own  wishes  on  them  instead 
of  helping  them  in  their  natural 
development.  However  much  a 
teacher  may  be  attracted  towards 
any  profession  or  any  particular 
set  of  ideas,  he  must  so  develop 
desirelessness  that  while  he  creates 
in  his  pupils  an  enthusiasm  for 
principles,     he     shall     not     cramp 

them    within    the    limits    of    any 
91 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


particular  application  of  the  prin- 
ciples, or  allow  their  generous  im- 
pulses—  unbalanced  by  experience 
— to  grow  into  narrow  fanaticism. 
Thus,  he  should  teach  the  princi- 
ples of  citizenship,  but  not  party- 
politics.  He  should  teach  the 
value  of  all  professions  to  a 
nation,  if  honourably  filled,  and 
not  the  superiority  of  one  profes- 
sion over  another. 


92 


IV.  GOOD  CONDUCT. 


IV.  GOOD    CONDUCT 

There  are  six  points  which  are 
summed  up  by  the  Master  as  Good 
Conduct.     These  are: 

1.  Self-control  as  to  the  mind. 

2.  Self-control  in  action. 

3.  Tolerance. 

4.  Cheerfulness. 

5.  One-pointedness. 

6.  Confidence. 

We  will  take  each  of  these  in  turn. 

1.  Self-control  as  to  the  mind 
is  a  most  important  qualification 
for  a  teacher,  for  it  is  principally 
through  the  mind  that  he  guides 
and   influences   his   boys.     In   the 

95 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


first  place  it  means,  as  my  Master 
has  said,  ^^  control  of  temper,  so 
that  you  may  feel  no  anger  or 
impatience."  It  is  obvious  that 
much  harm  will  be  done  to  boys 
if  their  teacher  is  often  angry 
and  impatient.  It  is  true  that 
this  anger  and  impatience  are  of- 
ten caused  by  the  outer  conditions 
of  the  teacher's  life,  but  this  does 
not  prevent  their  bad  effect  on 
the  boys.  Such  feelings,  due  gen- 
erally to  very  small  causes,  re-act 
upon  the  minds  of  the  students, 
and  if  the  teacher  is  generally 
impatient    and   very    often    angry, 

he   is  building  into   the   character 
96 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


of  the  boys  germs  of  impatience 
and  anger  which  may  in  after  life 
destroy  their  own  happiness,  and 
embitter  the  lives  of  their  rela- 
tions and  friends. 

We  have  to  remember  also  that 
the  boys  themselves  often  come 
to  school  discontented  and  worried 
on  account  of  troubles  at  home, 
and  so  both  teachers  and  boys 
bring  with  them  angry  and  im- 
patient thoughts,  which  spread 
through  the  school,  and  make  the 
lessons  difficult  and  unpleasant 
when  they  should  be  easy  and  full 
of  delight.  The  short  religious 
service    referred    to    in    an    early 

97 


EDUCATIOlSr    AS    SERVICE 


part  of  this  little  book  should  be 
attended  by  teachers  as  well  as 
students,  and  should  act  as  a  kind 
of  door  to  shut  out  such  undesira- 
ble feelings.  Then  both  teachers 
and  students  would  devote  their 
whole  energies  to  the  creation  of 
a  happy  school,  to  which  all  should 
look  forward  in  the  morning,  and 
which  all  should  be  sorry  to  leave 
at  the  end  of  the  school  day. 

The  lack  of  control  of  temper, 
it  must  be  remembered,  often 
leads  to  injustice  on  the  part  of 
the  teacher,  and  therefore  to  sul- 
lenness  and  want  of  confidence  on 

the  boy,  and  no  boy  can  make  real 
98 


EDUCATION    AS    SEEVICE 


progress,  or  be  in  any  real  sense 
happy,  unless  he  has  complete 
confidence  in  the  justice  of  his 
elders.  Much  of  the  strain  of 
modern  school  life  is  due  to  this 
lack  of  confidence,  and  much  time 
has  to  be  wasted  in  breaking  down 
barriers  which  would  never  have 
been  set  up  if  the  teacher  had 
been  patient. 

Anger  and  impatience  grow 
out  of  irritability.  It  is  as  neces- 
sary for  the  boy  to  understand 
his  teacher  as  for  the  teacher  to 
understand  the  boy,  and  hasty 
temper    is    an    almost    insuperable 

obstacle     in     the     way     of     such 
99 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


understanding.  ^^The  teacher  is 
angry  to-day,"  ^^The  teacher  is 
irritable  to-day,"  ^'The  teacher 
is  short-tempered  to-day,"  are 
phrases  too  often  on  the  lips  of 
boys,  and  they  produce  a  feeling 
of  discomfort  in  the  class-room 
that  makes  harmony  and  ease 
impossible.  Boys  learn  to  watch 
their  teachers,  and  to  guard  them- 
selves against  their  moods,  and  so 
distrust  replaces  confidence.  The 
value  of  the  teacher  depends  upon 
his  power  of  inspiring  confidence, 
and  he  loses  this  when  he  gives 
way  to  irritability.  This  is  par- 
ticularly    important     with     young 

100 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


children,  for  they  are  eager  to 
learn  and  eager  to  love,  and  only 
those  who  have  no  business  to  be 
teachers  would  dare  to  meet  such 
eagerness  by  anger.  It  is  of  course 
true  that  younger  boys  are  in 
many  ways  more  difficult  to  teach 
than  elder  ones;  for  they  have 
not  yet  learned  how  to  make 
efforts,  nor  how  to  control  and 
guide  them  when  made.  The 
teacher  has  therefore  to  help  them 
much  more  than  the  elder  boys 
who  have  learned  largely  to  help 
themselves.  The  chief  difficulty  is 
to  make  the  best  use  of  the  young 
energies  by  finding  them  continual 

101 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


and     interesting     employment;     if 

the  young  enthusiasms  are  checked 

harshly    instead    of    being    guided 

sympathetically  they  will  soon  die 

out,  and  the  boy  will  become  dull 

and  discontented. 

I  have   read  that  youth  is   full 

of  enthusiasm  and  ideals,  and  that 

these     gradually     disappear     with 

age,  until  a  man  is  left  with  few 

or  none.     But  it  seems  to  me  that 

enthusiasm,  if  real,  should  not  die 

out,    and    leave    cynicism    behind, 

but  rather  should  become  stronger 

and    more    purposeful    with    age. 

The  young  children  coming  straight 

out     of     the     heaven-world     have 
102 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


brought  with  them  a  feeling  of 
unity,  and  this  feeling  should  be 
strengthened  in  them,  so  that  it 
may  last  on  through  life.  Anger 
and  irritability  belong  only  to  the 
separated  self,  and  they  drive 
'dwaj  the  feeling  of  unity. 

Self-control  also  involves  calm- 
ness, courage  and  steadiness. 
Whatever  difficulties  the  teacher 
may  have  either  at  home  or  at 
school,  he  must  learn  to  face  them 
bravely  and  cheerfully,  not  only 
that  he  may  avoid  worry  for  him- 
self, but  also  that  he  may  set  a 
good  example  to  his  boys,  and  so 

help   them  to   become   strong   and 
103 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


brave.  Difficulties  are  much  in- 
creased by  worrying  over  them, 
and  by  imagining  them  before 
they  happen  —  doing  what  Mrs. 
Besant  once  called,  *^  crossing 
bridges  before  we  come  to  them." 
Unless  the  teacher  is  cheerful  and 
courageous  with  his  own  difficul- 
ties, he  will  not  be  able  to  help 
the  boys  to  meet  their  difficulties 
bravely.  Most  obstacles  grow  small 
before  a  contented  mind,  and  boys 
who  bring  this  to  their  work  will 
find  their  studies  much  easier  than 
if  they  came  to  them  discontented 
and  worried.  Courage  and  steadi- 
ness lead  to  self-reliance,  and  one 
104 


EDUCATIOISr    AS    SEKVICE 


who  is  self-reliant  can  always  be 
depended  on  to  do  his  duty,  even 
nnder  difficult  circumstances. 

Self-control  as  to  the  mind  also 
means  concentration  on  each  piece 
of  work  as  it  has  to  be  done.  My 
Master  says  about  the  mind:  *^You 
must  not  let  it  wander.  Whatever 
you  are  doing,  fix  your  thought 
upon  it,  that  it  may  be  perfectly 
done."  Much  time  is  lost  in  school 
because  the  boys  do  not  pay  suffi- 
cient attention  to  their  work;  and 
unless  the  teacher  is  himself  pay- 
ing full  attention  to  it  the  minds 
of  the  boys  are  sure  to  wander. 
Prayer  and  meditation  are  intended 

105 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


to  teach  control  of  the  mind,  but 
these  are  practised  only  once  or 
twice  a  day.  Unless  the  mind  is 
controlled  all  day  long  by  paying 
attention  to  everything  we  do,  as 
the  Master  directs,  we  shall  never 
gain  real  power  over  our  minds, 
so  that  they  may  be  perfect  in- 
struments. 

One  of  the  most  difficult  parts 
of  a  teacher 's  duty  is  to  turn  quick- 
ly from  one  subject  to  another,  as 
the  boys  come  to  him  with  their 
different  questions  and  troubles. 
His  mind  must  be  so  fully  under 
his  control  that  he  can  pay  com- 
plete attention  to  the  particular 
106 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


anxiety  of  each  boy,  taking  np  one 
after  tlie  other  with  the  same  care 
and  interest,  and  without  any  im- 
patience. If  he  does  not  pay  this 
full  attention  he  is  sure  to  make 
mistakes  in  the  advice  which  he 
gives,  or  to  be  unjust  in  his  de- 
cisions, and  out  of  such  mistakes 
very  serious  troubles  may  arise. 
On  this  point  my  friend,  Mr.  G. 
S.  Arundale,  the  well-known  Prin- 
cipal of  the  Central  Hindu  College, 
writes:  ^^At  frequent  intervals, 
of  course,  boys  come  with  com- 
plaints, with  petitions,  and  here 
I  have  to  be  very  careful  to  con- 
centrate my  attention  on  each  boy 

107 


EDUCATION    AS    SEEVICE 


and  on  his  particular  need,  for 
the  request,  or  complaint,  or  trou- 
ble, is  sometimes  quite  trivial  and 
foolish,  and  yet  it  may  be  a  great 
source  of  worry  to  the  boy  unless 
it  is  attended  to;  and  even  if  the 
boy  cannot  be  satisfied  he  can  gen- 
erally be  sent  away  contented.  One 
of  the  most  difficult  tasks  for  a 
teacher  is  to  have  sufficient  con- 
trol over  his  attention  to  be  able 
continually  to  turn  it  from  one 
subject  to  another  without  losing 
intensity,  and  to  bear  cheerfully 
the  strain  this  effort  involves.  We 
often  speak  of  something  taxing 
a  person's  patience,  but  we  really 

108 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


mean  that  it  taxes  a  person's  at- 
tention, for  impatience  is  only  the 
desire  of  the  mind  to  attend  to 
something  more  interesting  than 
that  which  for  the  moment  occu- 
pies it." 

Boys  must  be  helped  to  concen- 
trate their  attention  on  what  they 
are  doing,  for  their  minds  are 
always  wandering  away  from  the 
subject  in  hand.  The  world  out- 
side them  is  so  full  of  attractive 
objects  new  and  interesting  to 
them,  that  their  attention  runs 
away  after  each  fresh  thing  that 
comes  under  their  eyes.  A  child 
is  constantly  told  to  observe,  and 

109 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


he  takes  pleasure  in  doing  so; 
when  he  begins  to  reason  he  must 
for  the  time  stop  observing  and 
concentrate  his  mind  on  the  sub- 
ject he  is  studying.  This  change 
is  at  first  very  difficult  for  him, 
and  the  teacher  must  help  him  to 
take  up  the  new  attitude.  Some- 
times attention  wanders  because 
the  boy  is  tired,  and  then  the 
teacher  should  try  to  put  the  sub- 
ject in  a  new  way.  The  boy  does 
not  generally  cease  to  pay  atten- 
tion wilfully  and  deliberately,  and 
the  teacher  must  be  patient  with 
the  restlessness  so  natural  to  youth. 

Let   him   at  least   always  be   sure 
110 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


that  the  want  of  attention  is  not 

the  result  of  his  own  fault,  of  his 

own  way  of  teaching. 

If  the  attention  of  the  teachers 

and    the    boys    is    trained    in    this 

way,    the    whole    school    life    will 

become    fuller    and    brighter,    and 

there    will    be    no    room    for    the 

many     harmful     thoughts     which 

crowd  into  the  uncontrolled  mind. 

Even  when  rest  is  wanted  by  the 

mind,  it  need  not  be  quite  empty; 

in     the     words     of     the     Master: 

^^Keep    good    thoughts    always    in 

the    background    of    it,    ready    to 

come    forward    the    moment    it    is 

free. ' ' 

111 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


The  Master  goes  on  to  explain 
how  the  mind  may  be  used  to  help 
others,  when  it  has  been  brought 
under  control.  ^^  Think  each  day 
of  some  one  whom  you  know  to 
be  in  sorrow,  or  suffering,  or  in 
need  of  help,  and  pour  out  loving 
thoughts  upon  him."  Teachers 
hardly  understand  the  immense 
force  they  may  use  along  this  line. 
They  can  influence  their  boys  by 
their  thoughts  even  more  than  by 
their  words  and  actions,  and  by 
sending  out  a  stream  of  kind  and 
loving  thoughts  over  the  class, 
the  minds  of  all  the  boys  will  be 
made  quieter  and  happier.     Even 

112 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


without  speaking  a  word  they  will 
improve  the    whole    atmosphere. 

This  good  influence  of  thought 
should  spread  out  from  the  school 
over  the  neighbourhood.  As  those 
who  live  among  young  people  keep 
young  themselves,  and  keep  the 
ideals  and  pure  aspirations  of 
youth  longer  than  those  who  live 
mainly  among  i)lder  people,  so  the 
presence  of  a  school  should  be  a 
source  of  joy  and  inspiration  to 
the  surrounding  neighbourhood  or 
district.  Happy  and  harmonious 
thought-forms  should  radiate  from 
it,  lighting  up  the  duller  atmosphere 
outside,   pouring   streams   of  hope 

113 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


and  strength  into  all  within  its 
sphere  of  influence.  The  poor 
should  be  happier,  the  sick  more 
comfortable,  the  aged  more  re- 
spected, because  of  the  school  in 
their  midst. 

If  the  teacher  often  speaks  on 
these  subjects  to  his  boys,  and 
from  time  to  time  places  some 
clear  thought  befqje  them,  which 
they  all  think  about  together, 
much  good  may  be  done.  For 
thought  is  a  very  j^eal  and  power- 
ful force,  especially  when  many 
join  together  with  some  common 
thought  in  their  minds.  If  any 
great  disaster  has  happened,  caus- 

114 


f 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


ing  misery  to  numbers  of  people, 
the  teacher  might  take  advantage 
of  the  religious  service  to  draw 
attention  to  the  need,  and  ask  the 
boys  to  join  with  him  in  sending 
thoughts  of  love  and  courage  to 
the  sufferers. 

The  last  point  mentioned  by  the 
Master  is  pride:  ^^Hold  back  your 
mind  from  pride,"  He  says,  **for 
pride  comes  only  from  ignorance." 
We  must  not  confuse  pride  with 
the  happiness  felt  when  a  piece  of 
work  is  well  done;  pride  grows 
out  of  the  feeling  of  separateness : 
''I  have  done  better  than  others." 
Happiness    in    good    work    should 

115 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


grow  out  of  the  feeling  of  unity: 
'*I  am  glad  to  have  clone  this  to 
help  us  all.''  Pride  separates  a 
person  from  others,  and  makes 
him  think  himself  superior  to 
those  around  him;  but  the  pleas- 
ure in  some  piece  of  work  well 
done  is  helpful  and  stimulating, 
and  encourages  the  doer  to  take 
up  some  more  difficult  work.  When 
we  share  with  others  any  knowl- 
edge we  have  gained,  we  lose  all 
feeling  of  pride,  and  the  wish  to 
help  more,  instead  of  the  wish  to 
excel    others,   becomes   the   motive 

for  study. 

116 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


2.  Self-control  in  action.  The 
Master  points  out  that  while 
*^  there  must  be  no  laziness,  but 
constant  activity  in  good  work  .  .  . 
it  must  be  your  own  duty  that 
you  do  —  not  another  man's,  un- 
less with  his  permission  and  by 
way  of  helping  him."  The  teacher 
has,  however,  a  special  duty  in 
this  connection;  for  while  he  must 
offer  to  his  boys  every  opportu- 
nity for  development  along  their 
own  lines,  and  must  be  careful 
not  to  check  their  growth  or  to 
force  it  in  an  unsuitable  direction, 
he  is  bound  to  guide  them  very 
carefully,     to     watch    them     very 

117 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


closely,  and,  as  Master  has  said, 
to  tell  them  gently  of  their  faults. 
The  teacher  is  in  charge  of  his 
boys  while  they  are  in  school,  and 
must,  while  they  are  there,  take 
the  place  of  their  parents. 

His  special  lesson  of  self-control 
is  to  learn  to  adapt  his  own  meth- 
ods to  the  stage  through  which  his 
boys  are  passing.  While  content- 
ing himself  with  watching  and 
encouraging  them  when  their 
activity  is  running  along  right 
lines,  he  must  be  ready  to  step  in 
—  with  as  little  disturbance  as 
possible  —  to  modify  the  activity 
if  it  becomes  excessive,  to  stimu- 

118 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


late  it  if  it  becomes  dull,  and  to 

turn  it  into  new  channels  if  it  has 

taken    a    wrong    course.      In    any 

necessary   interposition   he    should 

try  to  make  the  boys  feel  that  he 

is   helping   them   to   find   the   way 

they  have  missed  but  really  wished 

to   go,   rather   than   forcing   them 

to  go  his  way.     Many  boys  have 

failed    to    develop    the    necessary 

strength  of  character,  because  the 

teacher,  by  constant   interference, 

has    imposed    on    them    his    own 

knowledge     as     to     right     action, 

instead  of  trying  to  awaken  their 

judgment  and  intuition.    The  boys 

become  accustomed  to  depend  en- 
119 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


tirely  on  him,  instead  of  learning 
gradually  to  walk  alone. 

The  teacher  must  be  very  careful 
not  to  allow  outside  interests  to 
take  him  away  from  his  duties  in 
the  school.  Many  teachers  do  not 
seem  to  realise  that  the  school 
should  occupy  as  much  time  as 
they  can  possibly  give  to  it  outside 
their  home  duties.  They  sometimes 
do  the  bare  amount  of  work  neces- 
sary, and  then  rush  away  to  some 
other  occupation  which  they  find 
more  interesting.  No  teacher  can 
be  really  successful  in  his  profes- 
sion unless  it  is  the  thing  he  cares 
for   most,    unless   he    is    eager   to 

120 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 

devote  all  the  time  lie  can  to  his 
boys,  and  feels  that  he  is  happiest 
when  he  is  working  with  them  or 
for  them. 

We  are  always  told  that  enthu- 
siasm and  devotion  to  their  work 
mark  the  successful  business  man, 
the  successful  official,  the  success- 
ful statesman;  they  are  equally 
necessary  for  the  successful  teacher. 
Anyone  who  desires  to  rise  high 
in  the  profession  of  teaching  must 
bring  to  his  work,  not  only  ability, 
but  similar  enthusiasm  and  devo- 
tion. Surely  even  more  enthusiasm 
and  devotion  should  be  brought  to 
the    moulding    of    many    hundreds 

121 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


of  young  lives  than  to  the  gaining 
of  money  or  power.  Every  moment 
that  the  teacher  is  with  his  boys 
he  can  help  them,  for,  as  has 
always  been  taught  in  India,  being 
near  a  good  man  helps  one's  evo- 
lution. Away  from  the  school  he 
should  be  thinking  of  them  and 
planning  for  them,  and  this  he 
cannot  do  if  his  whole  mind,  out 
of  school,  is  taken  up  with  other 
interests.  On  this,  again,  I  may 
quote  Mr.  Arundale:  ^'When  I 
get  up  in  the  morning  my  first 
thought  is  what  has  to  be  done 
during  the  day  generally  and  as 
regards  my  own  work  in  particular. 

122 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


A  rapid  mental  survey  of  the 
School  and  College  enables  me  to 
see  whether  any  student  seems  to 
stand  out  as  needing  particular 
help.  I  make  a  note  of  any  such 
student  in  my  note  book,  so  that  I 
may  call  him  during  the  day. 
Then  before  College  hours,  before 
I  take  up  any  extraneous  work,  I 
look  through  my  own  lectures  to 
see  that  I  am  ready  far  them. 
By  this  time  students  are  continu- 
ally dropping  in  with  questions, 
with  their  hopes  and  aspirations, 
with  difficulties  and  with  troubles, 
some  with  slight  ailments  they 
want  cured.    I  have  a  special  little 

123 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


place  in  which  to  see  those  young 
men,  so  that  the  atmosphere  may 
be  pure  and  harmonious,  and  upon 
each  one  I  endeavour  to  concen- 
trate my  whole  attention,  shutting 
everything  else  completely  off,  and 
I  am  not  satisfied  unless  each  boy 
leaves  me  with  a  smile  upon  his 
face. ' ' 

Unless  a  teacher  works  in  this 
spirit,  he  does  not  understand 
how  sacred  and  solemn  a  trust  is 
placed  in  his  hands.  No  teacher 
is  worthy  of  the  name  who  does 
not  realise  that  he  serves  God 
most  truly  and  his   country  most 

faithfully  when  he  lives  and  works 
124 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


with  his  boys.  His  self-sacrificing 
life,  lived  amongst  them,  inspires 
them  to  perform  their  duties  well, 
as  they  see  him  performing  his, 
and  thus  they  grow  in  reverence 
and  patriotism.  These  boys  are 
God's  children  entrusted  to  his 
care;  they  are  the  hope  of  the 
nation  placed  in  his  hands.  How 
shall  he  answer  to  God  and  the 
nation,  when  the  trust  passes  out 
of  his  hands,  if  he  has  not  conse- 
crated his  whole  time  and  thought 
to  discharge  it  faithfully,  but  has 
allowed  the  boys  to  go  out  into 
the     world    without    love    to    God, 

125 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


and   without   the   wish  and   power 
to  serve  their  country? 

Boys,  as  well  as  teachers,  must 
learn  self-control  in  action.  They 
must  not  so  engage  in  other  activ- 
ities as  to  neglect  their  ordinary 
school  duties.  My  Master  says  to 
those  who  wish  to  serve  Him: 
^^You  must  do  ordinary  work  better 
than  others,  not  worse."  A  boy's 
first  duty  in  school  is  to  learn  well, 
and  nothing  should  lead  him  to 
neglect  his  regular  school  work. 
Outside  this  —  as  it  is  best  that 
his  activities  should  be  kept  within 
the  school  —  the  wise  teacher  will 
provide  within  the   school   organi- 

126 


EDUCATIOISr    AS    SERVICE 


sation  all  the  activities  in  which 
his  boys  can  usefully  take  part. 
If  there  shoiild  be  any  national 
organisation  to  which  he  thinks  it 
useful  that  they  should  belong,  he 
will  himself  organise  a  branch  of 
it  within  the  school  and  he  himself 
and  the  other  teachers  will  take 
part  in  it.  For  example  the  Boy- 
Scout  movement  and  the  Sons  of 
India  are  both  national  organisa- 
tions, but  branches  of  them  should 
be  formed  in  the  separate  schools. 
Teachers  should  train  their  boys 
to  realise  that  just  as  the  home  is 
the  centre  of  activity  for  the 
child,   so  is   the   school   the  centre 

127 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


of  activity  for  the  youth.     As  the 

child    draws    his    life    and    energy 

from     the     home,     so     the     youth 

should   draw  his  from  the   school. 

The   most   useful   work   should   be 

done  in  connection  with  the  school 

so  that  it  may  form  part   of  the 

general  education  of  the  boy,  and 

be    in   harmony   with   the    rest    of 

his   growth.     There    should   be    in 

the    school    debating    societies,    in 

which    the    rules     of    debate    are 

carefully    observed,     so    that    the 

boys     may    learn     self-control     in 

argument;       dramatic      clubs      in 

which   they  may  learn   control   of 

expression;  athletic  clubs  in  which 
128 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


control  of  mind  and  action  are 
both  acquired;  literary  societies 
for  boys  specially  interested  in 
certain  studies;  societies  for  help- 
ing the  poorer  students. 

It  is  also  very  important  to 
give  the  boys  an  opportunity  of 
understanding  the  conditions  under 
which  their  country  is  growing, 
so  that  in  the  school  they  may 
practice  patriotism  apart  from 
politics.  It  is  very  unfortunate 
that  in  India  students  are  often 
taught  by  unscrupulous  agitators 
that  love  of  their  country  should 
be  shown  by  hatred  of  other  coun- 
tries; the  boys  would  never  believe 

129 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


this,  if  their  own  school  provided 
patriotic  services  for  its  boys,  so 
as  to  give  a  proper  outlet  for  the 
enthusiasm  they  rightly  feel.  They 
only  seek  an  outlet  away  from 
the  school  because  none  is  provi- 
ded for  them  within  it. 

Groups  of  students  should  be 
formed  for  various  kinds  of  social 
service  according  to  the  capacities 
of  the  boys,  and  the  needs  of 
their  surroundings:  for  the  pro- 
tection of  animals,  for  rendering 
first  aid  to  the  injured,  for  the 
education  of  the  depressed  classes, 
for     service     in    connection     with 

national    and    religious    festivals, 
130 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


and  so  on.  Boys,  for  whom  such 
forms  of  service  are  provided  in 
their  schools,  will  not  want  to  carry 
them  on  separately. 

Boys  have  a  special  opportunity 
of  practising  self-control  in  action 
when  they  play  games.  The  boys 
come  from  the  more  formal  disci- 
pline of  the  class-room  into  con- 
ditions in  which  there  is  a  sudden 
cessation  of  external  authority; 
unless  they  have  learned  to  replace 
this  with  self-control,  we  shall  see 
in  the  play-ground  brutality  in  the 
stronger  followed  by  fear  in  the 
weaker.  The  playing  fields  have 
a    special    value    in    arousing    the 

131 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


power  of  self-discipline,  and  if 
teachers  are  there  who  set  the 
example  of  submitting  to  the  au- 
thority of  the  captain,  of  showing 
gentleness  and  honour,  and  play- 
ing for  the  side  rather  than  for 
themselves,  they  will  much  help 
the   boys   in  gaining   self-control. 

The  boys  also  will  see  the  teacher 
in  a  new  light;  he  is  no  longer 
imposing  his  authority  upon  them 
as  a  teacher,  but  he  is  ruling  him- 
self from  within  and  subordinating 
his  own  action  to  the  rules  of  the 
game,  and  to  the  interests  of  those 
who   are   playing   with   him.     The 

boy  who   enters   the   field  with  no 
132 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


other  idea  than  that  of  enjoying 
himself  as  much  as  he  can,  even  at 
the  expense  of  his  fellow-students, 
will  learn  from  his  teacher's 
example  that  he  is  happiest  when 
playing  for  others,  not  for  himself 
alone,  and  that  he  plays  best  when 
the  object  of  the  game  is  the 
honour  of  the  school  and  not  his 
own  advantage.  He  also  learns 
that  the  best  player  is  the  boy 
who  practises  his  strokes  carefully, 
and  uses  science  to  direct  strength. 
Desiring  to  be  a  good  player  him- 
self, he  begins  to  train  his  body 
to   do   as  he   wishes,   thus  gaining 

self-control     in     action;      through 
133 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


this  self-control  he  learns  the 
great  lesson,  that  self-control 
increases  happiness  and  leads  to 
success. 

Another  thing  learned  in  the 
play-ground  is  control  of  temper, 
for  a  boy  who  loses  his  temper 
always  plays  badly.  He  learns  not 
to  be  hasty  and  impatient,  and  to 
control  liis  speech  even  when  he 
is  losing,  and  not  to  show  vanity 
when  he  wins.  Thus  he  is  making 
a  character,  strong  and  well- 
balanced,  which  will  be  very  useful 
to    him    when    he    comes    to    be    a 

man.      All    this    is    really    learned 
134 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


better  in  the  play-ground  than  in 
the  class-room. 

3.  Tolerance.  Most  of  my  Mas- 
ter's directions  under  this  head 
are  intended  mainly  for  disciples, 
but  still  their  spirit  may  be  ap- 
plied to  those  who  are  living  the 
ordinary  life.  Tolerance  is  a 
virtue  which  is  very  necessary  in 
schools,  especially  when  the  schol- 
ars are  of  different  faiths.  ^^You 
must  feel,''  says  my  Master, 
^^  perfect  tolerance  for  all,  and  a 
hearty  interest  in  the  beliefs  of 
those  of  another  religion,  just  as 
much  as  in  your  own.  For  their 
religion  is.  a  path  to  the  highest 

135 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


just  as  yours  is.  And  to  help  all 
you  must  understand  all."  It  is 
the  duty  of  the  teacher  to  be  the 
first  in  setting  an  example  along 
these  lines. 

Many  teachers,  however,  make 
the  mistake  of  thinking  that  the 
viev5^s  and  rules  to  which  they  are 
themselves  accustomed  are  univer- 
sal principles  which  everybody 
ought  to  accept.  They  are  there- 
fore anxious  to  destroy  the  stu- 
dents' own  convictions  and  customs, 
in  order  to  replace  them  by  others 
v;hich  they  think  better.  This  is 
especially  the  case  in  countries 
like  India,  where  the  boys  are  of 

136 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 

many  religions.  Unless  the  teacher 
studies  sympathetically  the  reli- 
gions of  his  pupils,  and  under- 
stands that  the  faith  of  another 
is  as  dear  to  him  as  his  own  is 
to  himself,  he  is  likely  to  make 
his  boys  unbelievers  in  all  religion. 
He  should  take  special  care  to 
speak  with  reverence  of  the  reli- 
gions to  which  his  boys  belong, 
strengthening  each  in  the  great 
principles  of  his  own  creed,  and 
showing  the  unity  of  all  religions 
by  apt  illustrations  taken  from  the 
various  sacred  books.  Much  can 
be   done   in   this    direction   during 

the  religious  service  which  precedes 
137 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


the  ordinary  work  of  the  day,  if 
this  be  carried  out  on  lines  com- 
mon to  all;  while  each  boy  should 
be  tanght  the  doctrines  of  his  own 
religion,  it  wonld  be  well  if  he 
were  reminded  once  in  the  day  of 
the  unity  of  all  religions,  for,  as 
the  Master  said,  every  ^^  religion 
is  a  path  to  the  highest." 

An  example  wonld  tlms  be  set 
in  the  school  of  members  of  diff- 
erent religions  living  happily  side 
by  side,  and  showing  respect  to 
each  other's  opinions.  I  feel  that 
this  is  one  of  the  special  functions 
of   the    school    in    the    life  of   the 

nation.    At  home  the  boy  is  always 
188 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


with  those  who  hold  the  same 
opinions  as  himself,  and  he  has 
no  opportunity  of  coming  into 
touch  with  other  beliefs  and  other 
customs.  At  school  he  should  have 
the  opportunity  of  meeting  other 
ways  of  believing,  and  the  teacher 
should  lead  him  to  understand 
these,  and  to  see  the  unity  under- 
neath them.  The  teacher  must 
never  make  a  boy  discontented 
with  his  own  faith  by  speaking 
contemptuously  of  it,  or  by  distort- 
ing it  through  his  own  ignorance. 
Such  conduct  on  his  part  leads  a 
boy  to  despise  all  religion. 

139 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


Then  again  there  are  many  diff- 
erent customs  which  belong  to  the 
different  parts  of  the  country. 
People  often  exaggerate  these  and 
look  on  them  as  essential  parts 
of  religion  instead  of  only  as 
marks  of  the  part  of  the  country 
in  which  they  were  born.  Hence 
they  look  with  contempt  or  disap- 
proval on  those  whose  customs 
differ  from  their  own,  and  they 
keep  themselves  proudly  separate. 
I  do  not  know  how  far  this  is  a 
difficulty  in  western  countries, 
but  in  India  I  think  that  customs 
separate  us  much  more  than  physi- 
cal distance  or  religious  differences. 

140 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


Each  part  of  the  country  has  its 
own  peculiarities  as  to  dress,  as 
to  the  manner  of  taking  food,  as 
to  the  way  of  wearing  the  hair, 
school  boys  are  apt  at  first  to  look 
down  upon  those  of  their  school- 
fellows whose  appearance  or  habits 
differ  from  their  own.  Teachers 
should  help  boys  to  get  over  these 
trivial  differences  and  to  think 
instead  of  the  one  Motherland  to 
which  they  all  belong. 

We  have  already  said  that  pa- 
triotism should  be  taught  without 
race  hatred,  and  we  may  add  that 
understanding  and  loving  other 
nations  is  part  of  the  great  virtue 

141 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


of  tolerance.  Boys  are  obliged  to 
learn  the  history  of  their  own  and 
of  other  nations;  and  history,  as 
it  is  taught,  is  full  of  wars  and 
conquests.  The  teacher  should 
point  out  how  much  terrible  suff- 
ering has  been  caused  by  these, 
and  that  though,  in  spite  of  them, 
evolution  has  made  its  way  and 
has  even  utilised  them,  far  more 
can  be  gained  by  peace  and  good 
will  than  by  hatred.  If  care  is 
taken  to  train  children  to  look  on 
different  ways  of  living  with  in- 
terest and  sympathy  instead  of 
with  distrust  and  dislike,  they  will 
grow  up  into  men  who  will  show 

142 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


to  all  nations  respect  and  tolerance. 
4.  Cheerfulness.  No  teacher  who 
really  loves  his  students  can  be 
anything  but  cheerful  during  school 
hours.  No  brave  man  will  allow 
himself  to  be  depressed,  but  de- 
pression is  particularly  harmful  in 
a  teacher,  for  he  is  daily  in  contact 
with  many  boys,  and  he  spreads 
among  them  the  condition  of  his 
own  mind.  If  the  teacher  is  de- 
pressed the  boys  cannot  long  be 
cheerful  and  happy;  and  unless 
they  are  cheerful  and  happy  they 
cannot  learn  well.  If  teachers  and 
boys  associate  cheerfulness  with 
their  school  life,  they  will  not  only 

143 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


find  the  work  easier  than  it  would 
otherwise  be,  but  they  will  turn  to 
the  school  as  to  a  place  in  which 
they  can  for  the  time  live  free 
from  all  cares  and  troubles. 

The  teacher  should  train  himself 
to  turn  away  from  all  worrying 
and  depressing  thoughts  the  mo- 
ment he  enters  the  school  gate, 
for  his  contribution  to  the  school 
atmosphere,  in  which  the  boys 
must  live  and  grow,  must  be 
cheerfulness  and  energy.  The  best 
way  to  get  rid  of  depression  is  to 
occupy  the  mind  with  something 
bright  and  interesting,  and  this 
should  not  be  difficult  when  he  is 

144 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


going  to  his  boys.  Thoughts  die 
when  no  attention  is  paid  to  them 
so  it  is  better  to  turn  away  from 
depressing  thoughts  than  to  fight 
them.  Cheerfulness  literally  in- 
creases life,  while  depression  di- 
minishes it,  and  by  getting  rid  of 
depression  the  teacher  increases 
his  energy.  It  is  often  indeed  very 
difficult  for  the  teacher,  who  has 
the  cares  of  family  life  upon  him, 
to  keep  free  from  anxiety,  but  still 
he  must  try  not  to  bring  it  into 
the  school. 

Mr.   Arundale  tells  me   that  he 
has    made    a    habit    of    becoming 

cheerful  the  moment  he  enters  the 
145 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


College  gates,  however  worried  he 
may  have  been  beforehand,  because, 
he  w^rites:  ^^I  want  my  contribu- 
tion to  the  school  day  to  be  hap- 
piness and  interest,  and  by  a  daily 
process  of  making  myself  pretend 
to  be  cheerful  when  the  College 
gates  are  entered,  I  have  finally 
succeeded  in  becoming  so.  If,  as 
I  pass  through  the  grounds  to  my 
office,  I  see  any  student  looking 
dull  and  gloomy,  I  make  a  point 
of  going  up  to  him  in  order  to 
exert  my  cheerfulness  against  his 
gloom,  and  the  gloom  soon  passes 
away.     Then   comes   the   religious 

service,  and  when  I  take  my  seat 
146 


EDUCATION    AS    SEKVICE 


upon  the  platform  with  the  reli- 
gious instructor,  I  try  to  ask  the 
Master's  blessing  on  all  the  dear 
young  faces  I  see  before  me,  and 
I  look  slowly  around  upon  each 
member  of  the  audience,  trying  to 
send  out  a  continual  stream  of 
affection  and  sympathy. ' ' 

I  have  already  said  that  boys 
watch  their  teachers'  faces  to  see 
if  they  are  in  a  good  or  a  bad 
mood.  If  the  teacher  is  always 
cheerful  and  loving,  the  boys  will 
no  longer  watch  him,  for  they  will 
have  learned  to  trust  him,  and  all 
anxiety  and  strain  will  disappear. 

If    the    teacher    displays    constant 
147 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


cheerfulness,  he  sends  ont  among 
his  boys  streams  of  energy  and 
good  will,  new  life  pours  into  them, 
their  attention  is  stimulated,  and 
the  sympathy  of  the  teacher  con- 
quers the  carelessness  of  the  boy. 
Just  as  a  boy  learns  control  of 
action  on  the  play-ground,  so  he 
may  learn  there  this  virtue  of 
cheerfulness.  To  be  cheerful  in 
defeat  makes  the  character  strong, 
and  the  boy  who  can  be  cheerful 
and  good-tempered  in  the  face  of 
the  team  which  has  just  defeated 
him   is   well    on   the   way   to   true 

manliness. 

148 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


5.  One-pointedness.  One-point- 
edness,  the  concentration  of  atten- 
tion on  each  piece  of  work  as  it 
is  being  done,  so  that  it  may  be 
done  as  well  as  possible,  largely 
depends  upon  interest.  Unless  the 
teacher  is  interested  in  his  work, 
and  loves  it  beyond  all  other  work, 
he  will  not  be  able  to  be  really  one- 
pointed.  He  must  be  so  absorbed 
in  his  school  duties  that  his  mind 
is  continually  occupied  in  planning 
for  his  boys,  and  looks  upon 
everything  in  the  light  of  its  pos- 
sible application  to  his  own  par- 
ticular work. 

149 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


One-pointedness  means  enthu- 
siasm, but  enthusiasm  is  impossible 
without  ideals.  So  the  teacher  who 
desires  to  be  one-pointed  must  be 
full  of  ideals  to  which  he  is  eager 
to  lead  his  school.  These  ideals 
will  sharpen  his  attention,  and 
make  him  able  to  concentrate  it 
even  upon  quite  trivial  details.  He 
will  have  the  ideal  school  in  his 
mind,  and  will  always  be  trying 
to  bring  the  real  school  nearer  to 
it.  To  be  one-pointed,  therefore, 
the  teacher  must  not  be  contented 
with  things  as  they  are,  but  must 
be  continually  on  the  alert  to  take 
advantage  of  every  opportunity  of 

improvement. 

150 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


The  teacher 's  ideal  will  of  course 
be  modified  as  he  learns  more  of 
his  students'  capacities  and  of  the 
needs  of  the  nation.  In  this  way, 
as  the  years  pass,  the  teacher  may 
find  himself  far  from  the  early 
ideals  that  at  first  gave  him  one- 
pointedness.  Ideals  will  still  guide 
him,  but  they  will  be  more  practi- 
cal, and  so  his  one-pointedness 
will  be  much  keener  and  will  pro- 
duce larger  results. 

The  Master  quotes  two  sayings 
which  seem  to  me  to  show  very 
clearly  the  lines  along  which  one- 
pointedness  should  work:  ^* What- 
soever thy  hand  findeth  to  do,  do 

151 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 

it  with  thy  might";  and:  ''What- 
soever ye  do,  do  it  heartily,  as  to 
the  Lord  and  not  unto  men."  It 
must  be  done  ''as  to  the  Lord." 
The  Master  says:  "Every  piece 
of  work  mnst  be  done  religiously 
— done  with  the  feeling  that  it  is 
a  sacred  offering  to  be  laid  on  the 
altar  of  the  Lord.  'This  do  I,  0 
Lord,  in  Thy  name  and  for  Thee.' 
Thinking  this,  can  I  offer  to  Him 
anything  but  my  very  best?  Can 
I  let  any  piece  of  my  work  be  done 
carelessly  or  inattentively,  when  I 
know  that  it  is  being  done  expressly 
for  Him?  Think  how  you  would 
do  your  work  if  you  knew  that  the 

152 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


Lord  Himself  were  coming  directly 
to  see  it;  and  then  realise  that  He 
does  see  it,  for  all  is  taking  place 
within  His  consciousness.  So  will 
you  do  your  duty  ^as  unto  the 
Lord  and  not  as  unto  men'." 

The  work  must  be  done,  too,  ac- 
cording to  the  teacher's  knowledge 
of  the  principles  of  evolution,  and 
not  merely  out  of  regard  to  small 
and  fleeting  interests.  The  teacher 
must  therefore  gradually  learn  his 
own  place  in  evolution,  so  that  he 
may  become  one-pointed  as  to 
himself;  unless  he  practises  one- 
pointedness  with  regard  to  his  own 
ideal   for  himself,   he  will   not   be 

153 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


able  to  bring  it  to  bear  on  his  sur- 
roundings. He  must  try  to  be  in 
miniature  the  ideal  towards  which 
he  hopes  to  lead  his  boys,  and  the 
application  of  the  ideal  to  himself 
will  enable  him  to  see  in  it  details 
which  otherwise  would  escape  his 
notice,  or  which  he  might  neglect 
as  unimportant. 

The  practical  application,  then, 
of  one-pointedness  lies  in  the  en- 
deavour to  keep  before  the  mind 
some  dominant  central  ideal  tow- 
ards which  the  whole  of  the  teach- 
ers'  and  boys'  daily  routine  shall 
be  directed,  so  that  the  small  life 
may    be    vitalised    by    the    larger, 

154 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


and  all  may  become  conscious  parts 
of  one  great  whole.  The  ideal  of 
service,  for  instance,  may  be  made 
so  vivid  that  the  whole  of  daily  life 
shall  be  lived  in  the  effort  to  serve. 
6.  Confidence.  First  among  the 
qualifications  for  the  teacher  has 
been  placed  Love,  and  it  is  fitting 
that  this  little  book  should  end 
with  another  qualification  of  almost 
equal  importance — Confidence.  Un- 
less the  teacher  has  confidence  in 
his  power  to  attain  his  goal,  he 
will  not  be  able  to  inspire  a  similar 
confidence  in  his  boys,  and  self- 
confidence  is  an  indispensable  at- 
tribute  for   success  in  all  depart- 

155 


El^UCATION"    AS    SERVICE 


ments  of  human  activity.  The 
Master  has  beautifully  explained 
why  we  have  the  right  to  be 
confident. 

^^You  must  trust  yourself.  You 
say  you  know  yourself  too  well! 
If  you  feel  so,  you  do  not  know 
yourself;  you  know  only  the  weak 
outer  husk,  which  has  fallen  often 
into  the  mire.  But  you — the  real 
you — you  are  a  spark  of  God's 
own  fire,  and  God,  Who  is  almighty, 
is  in  you,  and  because  of  that 
there  is  nothing  that  you  cannot 
do  if  you  will.'' 

The   teacher   must   feel   that   he 

has   the   power  to   teach   his   boys 
156 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


and  to  train  them  for  their  future 
work  in  the  world.  This  power  is 
born  of  his  love  for  them  and  his 
desire  to  help  them,  and  is  drawn 
from  the  one  spiritual  life  of  which 
all  partake.  It  is  because  the 
teacher  and  his  boys  are  one  in 
essence,  make  one  little  flame  in 
'^ God's  own  fire,"  that  the  teacher 
has  the  right  to  be  confident  that 
every  effort  to  help,  growing  out 
of  his  own  share  in  the  one  life, 
will  reach  and  stimulate  that  same 
life  in  the  boys. 

He  will  not  always  be  able  to 
see  at  once  the  effect  he  is  produ- 
cing.    Indeed,  the  most  important 

157 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


influence  the  teacher  has  shows  it- 
self in  the  growing  characters  of 
the  boys.  No  success  in  examina- 
tions, in  reports,  in  inspections  can 
satisfy  the  real  teacher  as  to  the 
effect  of  his  work.  But  when  he 
feels  that  his  own  higher  nature  is 
strengthened  and  purified  by  his 
eagerness  to  serve  his  boys,  when 
he  has  the  joy  of  watching  the 
divine  life  in  them  shining  out  in 
answer  to  that  in  himself,  then  his 
happiness  is  indeed  great.  Then 
he  has  the  peace  of  knowing  that 
he  has  awakened  in  his  boys  the 
knowledge  of  their  own  divinity, 
which,  sooner  or  later,  will  bring 

them  to  perfection. 
158 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


The  teacher  is  justified  in  feeling 
confident  because  the  divine  life  is 
in  him  and  his  boys,  and  they 
turn  to  him  for  inspiration  and 
strength.  Let  him  but  send  out  to 
them  all  that  is  highest  in  himself, 
and  he  may  be  quite  sure  that 
there  will  not  be  one  boy  who  will 
not  to  some  extent  respond  in  his 
own  higher  Self,  however  little 
the  response  may  be  seen  by  the 
teacher. 

This  constant  interplay  of  the 
one  life  between  teacher  and  stu- 
dents will  draw  them  ever  nearer 
to  each  other.  They  learn  in  the 
school    to    live    together    as    elder 

159 


EDUCATION    AS    SERVICE 


and  younger  brothers   of  the   one 

school  family.     By  living  a  life  of 

brotherhood  within  the  small  area 

of  the  school,  they  v^ill  be  trained 

to  live  that  life  in  the  larger  area 

of    the    nation.      Then    they    will 

gradually  learn  that  there  is  but 

one   great   brotherhood   in   all   the 

world,  one  divine  life  in  all.     This 

life  each  separate  member  of  the 

brotherhood  is   trying  to   express, 

consciously  or  unconsciously.    The 

teacher  is  indeed  happy  who  knows 

his  own  divinity;    that  knowledge 

of    the    divinity    in    man    is    the 

highest  lesson  it  will  ever  be  his 

privilege  to  teach. 
160 


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